Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2008-09: Josh Archibald was one of two sophomores in the varsity lineup for northern Minnesota’s Brainerd High School.

2009-10: Archibald led Brainerd (22-3) in scoring as a junior with 20 goals and 30 assists in 25 games. He finished with a +46 plus/minus and led the team in shots on goal (109). Archibald played for Team Minnesota U-18 in the Minnesota NIT tournament and scored 2 goals with 1 assist in four games. Archibald was selected by the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the 6th round (126th overall) of the USHL Entry Draft.

2010-11: Archibald was Brainerd’s leading scorer and a finalist for the coveted Mr. Hockey award as a senior. In 25 games, he scored 27 goals with 46 assists and was +47 with 40 PMs and a team-leading 176 shots on goal. In the pre-season Upper Midwest Elite League, Archibald scored 8 goals with 9 assists in 24 games for third-place Team North. Archibald committed to playing college hockey at the University of Nebraska-Omaha in 2011-12. He was not listed among the 210 North American skaters listed in Central Scouting’s final rankings but was selected in the sixth round (174th overall) by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2011 NHL Draft. In his senior year playing Minnesota high school hockey at Brainerd, Archibald posted 30 goals and 48 assists in 27 games. He was also a finalist for the Mr. Hockey award, given to the top high school player in Minnesota.

2011-12: Archibald skated in 36 of 38 games for Nebraska-Omaha as a freshman; playing both center and winger. He was tied for fourth in goals for the Mavericks with 10 and had 5 assists; finishing plus-three with 33 penalty minutes. Nebraska-Omaha finished seventh in the WCHA and lost to St. Cloud State in the first round of the conference tournament.

2012-13: Archibald was the second-leading scorer for Nebraska-Omaha, trailing only Ryan Walters, in his sophomore season. He scored 19 goals with 17 assists in 39 games and was +18 with 34 penalty minutes. Nebraska-Omaha finished seventh in the WCHA after starting the year 9-3-1 and lost to Minnesota State in a best of-three first round playoff series.

2013-14: Josh Archibald was the National College Hockey Conference Player of the Year as a junior in what would be his final season of college hockey — making his pro hockey debut with Penguins’ AHL affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in March 2014 and signing a three-year, entry-level contract with Pittsburgh in May. He scored 1 goal and was an even plus/minus with 13 penalty minutes in seven regular season games and played in two of 17 AHL playoff games; scoring a power play goal and finishing -1 with no penalties. Archibald scored 29 goals with 14 assists, including 8 power play goals, in 37 college games and was +3 with 62 penalty minutes for the Mavericks. Nebraska-Omaha finished third in the NCHC in the conference’s inaugural season before falling to sixth-place Denver in a best-of-three quarterfinal series.

2014-15: Archibald played 45 regular season games for Penguins’ AHL affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in his first pro season — spending time with the Wheeling Nailers in the ECHL. He scored 5 goals with 8 assists and was -1 with 24 penalty minutes with the Penguins. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton finished second in the East Division and reached the second round in the playoffs. Archibald played in three playoff games and was +1 with 1 assist. He played nine games with the Nailers and scored 7 goals with 4 assists, finishing +4 with 4 penalty minutes.

2015-16: Archibald made his NHL debut with the Penguins in a March 5th game against Calgary, seeing five minutes of ice time with no points nor penalties in a cameo appearance with Pittsburgh before being returned to the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. He played in 69 of 76 regular season games for the AHL team. Archibald scored 9 goals with 9 assists and was +1 with 75 penalty minutes. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton finished third in the Atlantic Division, sweeping Providence in a first-round series to face Hershey in the Atlantic Division finals.

Talent Analysis

Archibald is a product of Minnesota High School hockey whose speed is matched only by his strong work ethic. He possesses good offensive skills and a willingness to venture into traffic. Archibald is not the most physically imposing player but he possesses a great deal of strength and plays a determined style in the corners and along the boards. He developed into a strong leader during his college career at the University of Nebraska-Omaha that has served him well in his transition to professional hockey.

Future

Archibald made his NHL debut in a late season game with the Penguins in 2015-16. He was a physical, two-way forward for AHL affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in his second pro season. Not likely to be the goal scorer he was in college, Archibald heads into the third season of his original entry-level contract with Pittsburgh in 2016-17. If he is to reach the NHL it is likely to be in a lower line checking role.

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